CNWL is joining the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in encouraging people to get tested as Gonorrhoea cases rise in England.

The UKHSA said

“Gonorrhoea diagnoses from January to September 2022 were 21% higher than those reported over the same period in 2019. Data also indicates that during the first 9 months of 2022, gonorrhoea cases were higher than those reported over the same period in each of the last 3 years.”

Amy Bennett, a Consultant for genitourinary medicine and HIV at Surrey Sexual Health Service, said

“It’s an opportunity to get people thinking about their sexual health and hopefully we’ll encourage more people to get regular sexual health checks.

“Getting routinely tested is the only way to detect an infection and the earlier you’re tested and treated, the less chance there is of long-term complication.

“We can send a testing kit to your home quickly and discreetly and then text the result to your mobile phone so you don’t need to visit a clinic unless you have symptoms.”

In the UK, a young person is diagnosed with chlamydia or gonorrhoea every 4 minutes. Many common STIs such as Chlamydia can take two weeks to be detectable and more than half of sexually active adults will get a Sexually Transmitted Infection at some point in their lifetime.

How to get tested

CNWL’s Sexual Health Services in Surrey and London offer face to face appointments and online testing kits sent to your home to make it as easy as possible to get a regular test.

CNWL will contact you with your results. This is an NHS service and is completely free including free return postage.

If you live in Surrey 

You can order home testing kits on this webpage. There are two types of kits available for use at home. One for over 18s (this includes a test for Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea, HIV and Syphilis) and a chlamydia and Gonorrhoea test for under 25s.  

If you live in London

You can order a home testing kit online from Sexual Health London – visit the Sexual health London website to order.

If you need to see a clinician because you have symptoms or have been in contact with someone with a sexually transmitted infection, visit www.sexualhealth.cnwl.nhs.uk to book.  

The UK Health Security Agency has put together a helpful blog and video about how STI testing kits work. You can view the blog at this link 

The video STI self sampling kits is on You Tube here

Wear a condom

It’s also important to wear a condom. The Condom Distribution (C-Card) Scheme is a free and confidential condom distribution network for young people aged 13–24 years old in Surrey.

The scheme works by allowing young people under the age of 25 to pick up free condoms across different outlets in Surrey.

For more information, visit the Healthy Surrey website.